Horse meat scandal could create new battleground for supermarkets

The battleground for supermarkets in 21st-century Britain has been price.
Vouchers, discount own-label brands, and “three for two” promotions have
become a staple of the food industry as supermarket chains have battled for
market share across the UK.

Even Waitrose, seen as the most upmarket of the mainstream grocers, has centred its growth since the onset of the financial crisis around a pledge to match the price of branded products in Tesco.

Price is one of the main reasons why, since the 1950s, supermarkets have spread across the country, despite initially being seen as an unattractive and soulless alternative to the traditional corner shop.

But now, the horse meat scandal is taking the battle for customers to a new front.

The discovery of horse meat in burgers and lasagnes has prompted shoppers to question to what degree they can trust what is in their supermarket food.

While the blame for the crisis may lie with suppliers and fraud, the scandal has nonetheless shone an unflattering light on the supply chains used by supermarkets. As a result, shoppers are now asking whether the cheaper alternative is really an alternative at all.

According to research by Retail Week and ICM, 45pc of consumers say they will avoid buying meat from supermarkets affected by the horse meat scandal, despite the fact that almost three quarters believe the responsibility lies with suppliers.

Of course, it remains to be seen whether the impact on customer perceptions is lasting, or whether it passes as the reality of Britain’s stuttering economy weighs on consumer spending.

Since the recession, customers have snapped up own-label and discount food ranges as they have traded down from branded foods

In the run-up to Christmas, sales for Tesco’s Everyday Value range grew faster than the rest of the business while J Sainsbury said its By Sainsbury’s range grew at almost 5pc year-on-year. Justin King, chief executive of Sainsbury’s, even picked out champagne and prosecco as a new segment where own-label products were making progress, with sales up 15pc.

The latest market share data from Nielsen also shows how Aldi and Lidl are still gaining market share. In the 12 weeks to February 2, Aldi sales grew by 45pc compared to a year ago and its market share has risen from 2pc to 2.8pc.

So, will consumers suddenly now be prepared to pay more to guarantee quality?

According to Tim Froggett, a brand expert at Anglia Ruskin University, the discovery of horse meat in food “fundamentally undermines” the relationship between supermarkets and customers.

Customers already have trust issues with supermarket own-labels. For example, while own-label products account for as much as 70pc of washing-up liquid, penetration falls to as little as 10pc for healthcare products such as toothpaste and shampoos.

However, even before horsegate, supermarkets had begun to focus more efforts away from price.

Take Tesco. A year ago, Britain’s biggest retailer issued its first profits warning in 20 years.

The response of chief executive Philip Clarke was not to simply slash prices further, but instead pledge to “Build a Better Tesco”. He unveiled a £1bn plan to modernise its stale stores, hire more staff and improve 1,850 products.

This also included rebranding its Tesco Value range – where packaging was marked with harsh blue and white stripes – with the more upmarket Everyday Value.

Price still remains at the heart of Tesco, but, in an era when even Waitrose pledges to price match Tesco and prices have converged among the major supermarkets, Clarke realised that Tesco had to offer something more.

Tesco’s turnaround plan has suffered a setback with the discovery of horse meat in its Everyday Value burgers and lasagne, but the company’s robust response of dropping suppliers and taking out full-page newspaper adverts to apologise shows the importance it has placed on the issue.

As Caroline Gulliver, analyst at Espirito Santo says: “With clear price transparency across the major retailers as a result of price matching campaigns, and an increasingly similar breadth of product range from the big four, the retail winners will be those whose “point of difference” really resonates with customers, be it quality, value own label or in-house butchers and bakers.”

The reference to in-house butchers and bakers is to Wm Morrison, which is the biggest fresh food maker in the UK as a well as the fourth largest supermarket group.

Since taking control of the supermarket in 2010, chief executive Dalton Philips has introduced a new focus on fresh food in stores, which includes vegetables resting on baskets of ice.

However, in 2012, Morrisons was the worst performer of the major supermarkets, with like-for-likes sales falling 2.5pc in the six weeks to December 30.

Philips blamed the slump on Morrisons not having an online business and only a small collection on convenience stores, but also a failure by the Bradford-based retailer to communicate its points of difference.

So, this month, it has launched a new advertising campaign fronted by Ant & Dec with the strapline “More of what matters”. The adverts are designed to emphasis the craft skills at the supermarket, the fact that it produces fresh products through its own farms and abattoirs, and that 100pc of its fresh meat is British.

This message is even more relevant now.

The company released data that showed sales at Morrisons’ in-store butchers have increased by 18pc since the horse meat saga emerged.

This includes a 50pc increase in the sales of fresh burgers, with the retailer stating that “unprecedented” numbers of customers had approached its butchers for advice about buying fresh burgers rather than frozen or pre-packed products. Sales of ready meals are understood to have fallen.

Nonetheless, Morrisons, like its rivals, will be jittery on Friday morning as the Food Standards Agency prepares to unveil the results of tests for cross-contamination on 1,000 different supermarket products.

Morrisons may produce its own fresh food, but the company buys processed and frozen meats from third parties and also stocks branded products that could be at risk, such as Findus.

“If a lot come back positive [for cross-contamination], this story will take a whole other step forward,” said one leading retail executive.

Morrisons is now thought to be considering expanding its food production capabilities. Waitrose, its rival, has already announced – after pork was found in some of its meatballs – that will build a new unit to produce a range of frozen meat products.

Supermarkets were already evolving, but the events of the last few days are accelerating that change.